Connecting Arts with School Curriculum
Teacher/Artist Collaboration
History/Visual Art/Media
Small School Mentorship Program
Art
As an extension of Flying Arts’ Connecting Arts with School Curriculum (CASC) program, the Small Schools
Mentorship Program (SSMP) is for schools with 50 or less students in regional and remote Queensland. This
unique mentor program offers the support of a registered primary teacher/artist to collaborate with your
school to plan and deliver an in-school arts rich curriculum experience. Ongoing support is a unique feature
of this specialised program.
This program is intended to develop: confidence in the planning and delivery of arts rich experiences in the
classroom; better understanding of how to deliver on arts curriculum and how to connect arts into other
areas of curriculum to enhance teaching and learning; and to enhance practical skills in the visual and media
arts.
This template and materials are intended as a resource and source of ideas for educators to use as a model.
SCHOOL
Millaroo State School, North Qld
TEACHER
Gemma Peterson/Erin Alloway
LOCATION
Near Ayr
ARTIST
Therese Flynn-Clarke
YEAR LEVEL
P-6
LESSON NAME
Past, Present, Future: Tell me a Story
History/Visual art/Media Art
INTRODUCTION
Millaroo State School expressed an interest to focus on Media Arts and link this to the Humanities and
Social Science (HAAS) curriculum. It was decided to create a series of at least three mixed media works
of art that focus on past, present and future in the P-6 areas of study within History. These three Visual
art works were then to be photographed and made into a short film/ presentation that incorporate
sound effects, voice overs with images and possibly text (making links to Media Arts) at a later stage.
LESSON IDEA
Students will focus on Visual Art principles and elements (line, texture, incorporating text, overlapping
and layering and perspective) to create three mixed media backgrounds using a variety of papers that
tells the story of their area of study within the curriculum e.g. commemorations; ships/1st fleet;
colonisation; changing role of women etc
The three mixed media works will be from the perspective of past, present and future. Students will
then create pen and ink drawings in black and white that annotate their historical perspective. These
will be cut out and layered on the backgrounds.
AUSTRALIAN CURRICULUM LINKS
History
F-3 How they, their family and friends commemorate past events that are important to
them (ACHASSK012)
How the present, past and future are signified by terms indicating time, as well as by dates and changes
that may have personal significance, such as birthdays, celebrations and seasons (ACHASSK029)
Days and weeks celebrated or commemorated in Australia including Australia Day, Anzac Day, and
National Sorry Day and the importance of symbols and emblems (ACHASSK064)
Celebrations and commemorations in places around the world (for example, Chinese New Year in
countries of the Asia region, Bastille Day in France, Independence Day in the USA), including those that
are observed in Australia (for example, Christmas Day, Diwali, Easter, Hanukkah, the Moon Festival and
Ramadan) (ACHASSK065)
Yr 4 Reasons (economic, political and social) for the establishment of British colonies in Australia after
1800 (ACHASSK106)
Stories of the First Fleet, including reasons for the journey, who travelled to Australia, and their
experiences following arrival (ACHASSK085)
Yr 5 The impact of a significant development or event on an Australian colony (ACHASSK108)
Yr 6 Stories of groups of people who migrated to Australia since Federation (including from ONE country
of the Asia region) and reasons they migrated (ACHASSK136)
Visual Arts
F-4 Use and experiment with different materials, techniques, technologies and processes to make
artworks (ACAVAM107)
F-2 Create and display artworks to communicate ideas to an audience (ACAVAM108)
Yr 3-4 Present artworks and describe how they have used visual conventions to represent their ideas
Explore ideas and artworks from different cultures and times, including artwork by Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander artists, to use as inspiration for their own representations (ACAVAM110)
Yr 5-6 Develop and apply techniques and processes when making their artworks (ACAVAM115)
Plan the display of artworks to enhance their meaning for an audience (ACAVAM116)
Explain how visual arts conventions communicate meaning by comparing artworks from different social,
cultural and historical contexts, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artworks (ACAVAR117)
Media Arts
F-2 Explore ideas, characters and settings in the community through stories in images, sounds and
text (ACAMAM054)
Use media technologies to capture and edit images, sounds and text for a purpose (ACAMAM055)
Create and present media artworks that communicate ideas and stories to an audience (ACAMAM056)
Yr 3-4 Investigate and devise representations of people in their community, including themselves,
through settings, ideas and story structure in images, sounds and text (ACAMAM058)
Use media technologies to create time and space through the manipulation of images, sounds and text
to tell stories (ACAMAM059)
Plan, create and present media artworks for specific purposes with awareness of responsible media
practice (ACAMAM060)
Yr 5-6 Explore representations, characterisations and points of view of people in their community,
including themselves, using settings, ideas, story principles and genre conventions in images, sounds
and text (ACAMAM062)
Develop skills with media technologies to shape space, time, movement and lighting within images,
sounds and text (ACAMAM063)
Plan, produce and present media artworks for specific audiences and purposes using responsible media
practice (ACAMAM064)
APPROACH AND SEQUENCE OF LESSON
1. PowerPoint presentation setting up lesson ideas/art immersion day activities (e.g. narrative art,
focus etc)
2. Using a variety of papers e.g. tissue paper, cobweb paper, corrugated card, as well as
photocopies of e.g. historical newspapers, colonial ships list, old sewing patterns, old
birthday/celebrations advertisements etc (focus on implied and actual texture) and using inks
and watercolours students will create three backgrounds representing their story from history
considering the past present and future.
3. Using black fine liner pens students will annotate their historical stories by drawing the content
using a variety of lines and with suitable perspective for the backgrounds. These elements will
be cut out and glued onto the backgrounds.
4. Responding /Evaluation of created works at conclusion of day. (Share with families)
RESOURCE REQUIREMENTS
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watered down PVA glue in take away containers with old paintbrushes for applying glue mix (i.e.
some water added to craft glue so consistency is not too thick, but not too thin)
variety of photocopied papers (perhaps pre-stained with old teabags etc to create aged effect)see notes above
variety of papers/card etc- see notes above
watercolours (pencils, paints)
inks
variety of brush sizes for applying watercolours and inks (preferably soft brushes)
black fine liners e.g. Sharpies (non-water soluble)
good quality paper e.g. cartridge or watercolour paper
plastic or newspaper laid on tables and set up ready to go (preferably in groups to share
materials)
water tubs
texture plates and crayons (not necessary but useful for concept of implied texture)
OUTCOME
Students will have a minimum of three completed works which can be photographed or filmed and used
to create a Media Arts piece of work that incorporates, sounds effects, voiceovers, time and ‘tells a
story’ within the year level study of History
PHOTOGRAPHS
Students beginning their narrative mixed media art –
Beginning the final layer of the narrative art with pen and ‘layering’ the narrative with meaning.
Colonial Past- Women’s role in Australia
in the past.
Narrative drawings of historical year
level area of focus.
Prep students’ Mixed media art work-Celebrating Australia Day in the Present. Australia Day in the Past.
(Linked to commemorations and celebrations F-3)
P-3 Remembrance Day- in the Past. NB Students
to create backgrounds that reflected
the Past, Present and Future. A lot of creative
problem solving as to how to add this in the
details of the layers and the drawings.
Australia’s colonial Past- transport. Yrs 4-attempted
Backgrounds with layers of meaning to represent the past.
The changing role of women- The Past. Year 6 student.
Photography: Therese Flynn-Clarke